Which playwright ridiculed the philosopher Socrates in "The Clouds"?

The playwright who ridiculed Socrates in "The Clouds" is Aristophanes. This comedic play, performed in 423 BCE, portrays Socrates as a sophistic thinker who engages in absurd reasoning and is disconnected from practical life. Aristophanes uses satire to critique the intellectual trends of his time and the Sophistic movement, of which Socrates was often associated.

In "The Clouds," Socrates is depicted as the head of a school in which he teaches young men to evade moral responsibilities and engage in clever but unscrupulous arguments. The play is significant not only for its comedic elements but also for its commentary on the perceived decline of traditional values and the emergence of new philosophical ideas in Athenian society. Aristophanes’ approach highlights the tension between traditional Athenian values and the new intellectual currents that philosophers like Socrates represented.